How to make Zhongguancun more "world-class"

China Youth Daily, China Youth Network Intern Reporter Jia Jiye Reporter Yin Xining

On average, it takes less than 5 minutes for a technology company to be founded or set up, which was once known as the "Zhongguancun speed". Today, this speed is constantly being refreshed.

In November 2021, Zhongguancun entered a new period of development. The central government has decided to "take the lead in experimenting" on this land and accelerate the construction of world-leading science and technology parks and innovation highlands. Subsequently, a series of supporting policies were introduced. The "Development and Construction Plan for Zhongguancun National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone during the 14th Five-Year Plan Period" proposes that by 2025, Zhongguancun Demonstration Zone will take the lead in building a world-leading science and technology park. Today, this once small village in the western suburbs of Beijing is making great strides towards this goal.

The proof is in the data. At present, Zhongguancun has formed a development pattern of "one district and multiple parks", with a spatial scale of 488 square kilometers and more than 17,000 national high-tech enterprises. In 2023, Zhongguancun enterprises above designated size (hereinafter referred to as "enterprises above designated size") are expected to achieve a total revenue of 8.6 trillion yuan, accounting for about 1/6 of the total income of 178 enterprises above designated size in high-tech zones across the country. As of the end of November 2023, the number of valid invention patents owned by enterprises in Zhongguancun Demonstration Zone has exceeded 260,000......

"In practice, Zhongguancun has explored a new path with Chinese characteristics of 'developing high technology and realizing industrialization'. Yu Yingjie, member of the Standing Committee of the Beijing Municipal Party Committee and secretary of the Education Working Committee, said. It is not difficult to see from the development path of Zhongguancun that serving the national strategy, innovating the system and mechanism, and building industrial clusters have played a non-negligible role.

Science and technology are the primary productive forces. Yu Yingjie mentioned that in the process of building a world-leading science and technology park, Zhongguancun "has always been a 'pioneer' in serving the national strategy". He pointed out that with major original innovation and key core technology breakthroughs as the main direction of attack, Zhongguancun has become the main position of China's independent innovation. "In the 'Top Ten Advances in Chinese Science' over the years, Zhongguancun basically accounts for half. ”

At the Beijing Institute of Quantum Information Science (hereinafter referred to as the "Quantum Institute"), located in Haidian District, Beijing, a world record for quantum direct communication distance was born. It is understood that quantum direct communication changes the dual-channel structure of key distribution and ciphertext transmission of traditional secure communication to a single-channel structure, which can not only perceive eavesdropping, but also prevent eavesdropping. By taking advantage of the characteristics of quantum states, it is also possible to check and communicate while information is transmitted.

In 2000, Long Guilu, vice president of the Institute of Quantum Science and professor of Tsinghua University, and his team proposed the first protocol for quantum direct communication. In 2022, Long Guilu's team collaborated with the team of Professor Lu Jianhua of Tsinghua University to design a new system for hybrid coding of phase quantum states and time-stamped quantum states, setting a world record for the quantum direct communication distance to 100 kilometers in one fell swoop.

Focusing on quantum information, the Institute has also conducted a wealth of research, including the world's first practical quantum direct communication prototype. At the 2023 Zhongguancun Forum, the Institute officially released a new generation of quantum computing cloud platform - Quafu, which is the first in the world to propose and implement an open-architecture dual-field quantum key distribution system, with a communication distance of more than 615 kilometers. It is understood that by logging in to the Quafu quantum cloud platform, users can experience, teach and conduct scientific research, and can also develop some practical applications, such as quantum finance and quantum games.

In recent years, a number of major achievements have emerged in Zhongguancun, such as Quafu, a new generation of 256-core blockchain-specific acceleration chips, and the world's first successful liquid oxygen methane launch vehicle in orbit, which has become an important force in Beijing's construction of an international science and technology innovation center. According to relevant data, the number of invention patents per 10,000 people in Beijing has more than quadrupled in ten years, from 48.2 in 2014 to 262.9 in 2023.

The original innovation of "from 0 to 1" continues to emerge in Zhongguancun, which is inseparable from the innovative consciousness of courage to reform. "Several Measures to Support Zhongguancun National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone to Carry out High-level Scientific and Technological Self-reliance and Self-reliance Pilot Reform" requires that Zhongguancun should aim at the most prominent shortcomings and the most urgent tasks to achieve high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-reliance, and seek breakthroughs and innovations in strengthening the main body of innovation, gathering innovation elements, and optimizing innovation mechanisms.

While serving the national strategy and seeking major scientific and technological innovation breakthroughs, Zhongguancun has always adhered to being a "test field" for the reform of the scientific and technological system, and has taken the lead in piloting a number of major reform policies, including the "New Four" and "New New Four", and has been replicated and promoted throughout the country, playing a demonstration and leading role in the implementation of the innovation-driven development strategy in the country.

Technology business incubators are an important component of the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. In 1989, the first incubator was born in Beijing, and for more than 30 years, the incubator has participated in more than 30 billion yuan of investment funds, and many enterprises have gone to a broader market under the "incubation" of the incubator.

In 2022, Zhongguancun took the lead in promulgating the "Benchmark Incubator Cultivation Action Plan" nationwide, exploring the layout and construction of 23 benchmark incubators. According to the latest data provided by the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission and the Zhongguancun Management Committee, after more than a year of construction and development, the above 23 benchmark incubators are incubating 930 enterprises, holding a total of 303 activities such as entrepreneurship counseling, early investment, and resource docking, and serving 6,234 enterprises.

The reform of science and technology innovation finance is also an important focus of Zhongguancun's "first and first trial". At the end of October 2023, Beijing issued the "Implementation Plan for the Construction of a Pilot Zone for the Construction of a Pilot Zone for Scientific and Technological Innovation Financial Reform in Zhongguancun National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone, Beijing", which put forward 37 key tasks from seven aspects, and strived to build an institutional mechanism for financial effective support for scientific and technological innovation in five years.

Yu Yingjie pointed out at the press conference held by the State Council Information Office a few days ago that at present, the new round of "first and first trial" 24 reform measures have been fully implemented, and the ministry and city have issued more than 50 supporting policies, which have greatly stimulated the vitality of innovation and entrepreneurship, and Zhongguancun has become the most dynamic and influential entrepreneurial center in China. In the next step, Zhongguancun will accelerate the improvement of the innovation ecosystem, and on the basis of the previous stage, launch a new Zhongguancun "first and first trial" reform policy.

At present, new quality productivity has become a key force to promote high-quality economic and social development. In recent years, Beijing has successively introduced a series of policies and measures such as artificial intelligence and commercial aerospace, taken the lead in opening up new tracks for future industries such as quantum and 6G, accelerated the construction of industrial clusters such as Zhongguancun synthetic biology manufacturing, and supported leading enterprises to take the lead in forming innovation consortia, forming a number of industrial clusters with technological dominance. "Zhongguancun has become the starting point of high-tech enterprises. Yu Yingjie said.

It is understood that Beijing is actively coordinating linkage and integrated development in the "three cities and one district" (i.e., Zhongguancun Science City, Huairou Science City, Future Science City and Innovative Industrial Cluster Demonstration Zone), and in 2023, the Innovative Industrial Cluster Demonstration Zone will undertake more than 270 achievements of the three major science cities, double that of 2022. At present, there are 28,300 national high-tech enterprises, 7,180 specialized and new "little giant" enterprises and 114 unicorn enterprises in Beijing, ranking first among all cities in the country.

Focusing on the construction goal of the world's leading science and technology parks, Beijing has also built 23 high-quality characteristic industrial parks to support the high-quality development of Zhongguancun's "one district and multiple parks".

Located on the shore of Tongming Lake in Yizhuang, the National Information Technology Application and Innovation Industrial Park of Beijing Economic and Technological Development Zone (hereinafter referred to as "Information Innovation Park") is the only national information innovation park and national information technology application innovation base jointly deployed and constructed by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Beijing Municipal Government.

UnionTech Software Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as UnionTech Software) is one of the first batch of enterprises to settle in the Xinchuang Park, and Wang Youhai, Marketing Director of UnionTech Software, has witnessed the improvement of the industrial cluster in the park.

Nowadays, from chips to hard disks, from hardware to software, there are corresponding enterprises stationed in the park. "For example, chip manufacturer Loongson, computer manufacturer Tongfang, etc., these are the backbone enterprises in Beijing. Wang Youhai said that Xinchuang Park has formed a relatively complete upstream and downstream industrial chain, which provides convenience for the development and upgrading of products.

In the interview, the reporter learned that in the first quarter of 2024, the newly registered enterprises in the Xinchuang Park increased by more than 100% year-on-year, and the number of landed enterprises exceeded 300. According to the relevant person in charge of the Xinchuang Park, the park currently gathers more than 90% of the country's leading information technology enterprises, and the number of landed enterprises, the increment of economic benefits and the investment in fixed assets will all increase by more than 20% in 2023. At the same time, the national general software and hardware research and adaptation center built in the park, the basic software and hardware verification and testing platform of the five electronic institutes of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, etc., also provide stronger support for the development of related industries.

In addition to the Xinchuang Park, from the mature Zhongguancun (Fangshan) Intelligent Emergency Equipment Industrial Park to the upcoming Yizhuang "Rocket Street", the construction of science and technology parks and industrial clusters has become an important fulcrum for Zhongguancun to promote the construction of the world's leading science and technology parks.

Yu Yingjie said that in the next step, the relevant departments will continue to focus on industrial upgrading, focus on artificial intelligence, medicine and health, strengthen the deep integration of industry, university and research led by enterprises, accelerate the cultivation of world-class innovative enterprises, build high-quality science and technology incubators, university science and technology parks, characteristic industrial parks and other platforms, increase the transformation of scientific and technological achievements, continue to lay out future industries, continuously cultivate and expand new quality productivity, and accelerate the formation of industrial clusters with world influence.

Source: China Youth Daily client